Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-10

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows what Anthropology graduates from one university did after finishing their undergraduate degree course. The table shows the salaries of the anthropologists in work after five years.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparison where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The pie chart given illustrates the route chosen by Anthropology graduates of a university soon after completion of their bachelors' coursework. Additionaly, the table gives information about the perentage of Anthropology graduates in different sectors and their yearly earnings.

Overall, major portion of Anthropology graduates started full time work soon after the completion of their course while a small number of these students pursued thier education in the same field. On the hand major portion of graduates making more than 100,000 dollars yearly belonged to government sector while those working in private sector were not earning exceptional remunerations.

Pie chart suggests that highest proportion (52%) of graduates landed full time job after completion of their degree. Only 5% of graduates were able to balance both part time work and posgrad study

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main destination accurately: full-time work accounts for 52%, and you note that only 5% combined part-time work with postgraduate study. The overview also attempts a comparison between government and private-sector salaries. However, the response covers only a small part of the visual: it omits the other graduate destinations and gives no salary-band figures or comparisons to support the overview. The claim that a small number pursued further study is also incomplete, since the chart distinguishes full-time postgraduate study from study alongside part-time work. The response is 19 words below the required minimum, which contributes to its limited coverage. Include the main categories and the clearest salary contrasts to address the task more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview beginning with “Overall,” and a detail sentence about the pie chart. This gives the reader some sense of organisation. However, the progression is incomplete because the response stops after discussing one destination and never moves on to describe the table. The overview’s comparison of government and private-sector earnings is not followed by supporting details, so the connection between the overview and the body remains weak. Some linking is attempted, but “On the hand” does not form a clear transition, and the final sentence ends without a concluding comparison. Use separate, balanced paragraphs for the chart and table, and connect each overview point to relevant figures.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonably varied set of task-related expressions, including “route chosen,” “yearly earnings,” “proportion,” and “remunerations.” These choices show an attempt to move beyond basic vocabulary, and the main meaning is generally understandable. However, several word choices or forms are inaccurate or awkward, such as “bachelors’ coursework,” “balance both part time work and posgrad study,” and “exceptional remunerations.” There are also spelling errors, including “Additionaly,” “perentage,” and “thier,” which reduce precision. Aim for standard academic collocations and check spelling carefully; for example, “undergraduate degree,” “combine part-time work with postgraduate study,” and “annual salaries” would express the intended ideas more naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms. For example, the overview uses a contrast between graduates in government and private employment, and the opening sentence introduces the chart and table together. Meaning is usually recoverable, but some grammatical problems affect accuracy. In “Overall, major portion,” the singular count noun needs an article, while “On the hand” is missing “other” in the contrast phrase. The sentence beginning “Only 5%” is left without a full stop, and the response ends abruptly. There is also inconsistent control of possessive and plural forms in “bachelors’ coursework.” Use complete sentences, check articles and fixed grammatical phrases, and proofread punctuation to make the range more controlled.

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